Issue - meetings

Recommendations

Executive are asked:

a.     To note the contents of this report

b.     To approve local authority acceptance of the Department for Education Grant funding of £972,188 in respect of Financial Support for Local Authorities Supporting Maintained Schools in Financial Difficulty.

c.      To approve the distribution of the additional funding support to maintained schools currently in a financial deficit, that meet the proposed eligibility criteria, based on the following methodology (Option 1):

Maintained Nursery Schools                                £25,000 per school

Primary Schools (under 200 pupils)*                    £25,000 per school

Primary Schools (200 pupils and over)    £50,000 per school

Secondary Schools                                              £100,000 per school

Special Schools                                        £50,000 per school

*Primary schools under 200 pupils, with a forecast deficit balance of £100k or more as at 31 March 2024 to receive an additional funding allocation of £25,000.

d.     To approve that a condition of acceptance of additional funding by any school will require a school resource management review to be undertaken where a review has not been completed since April 2021.

Considered – A report of the Corporate Director – Children and Young People’s Service which provided the Executive with an overview of the additional grant funding received by the Council from the Department for Education (DfE) in 2023-24 to support maintained schools in financial difficulty.

Councillor Annabel Wilkinson introduced the report and advised that the grant was for £972,188.  Approval was sought for additional funding for maintained schools currently in financial deficit and which met the proposed eligibility criteria based on the methodology set out int the resolution below.

In response to a question from Councillor Wilkinson, Howard Emmett, the Assistant Director Resources, advised that the grant was primarily intended to contribute to the elimination of existing deficits, rather than to be allocated to schools currently in surplus but which might be predicted to be in deficit in the future.

On a show of hands it was

Resolved (unanimously) – That:

a.     the contents of the report be noted;

b.     the local authority accept the Department for Education Grant funding of £972,188 in respect of Financial Support for Local Authorities Supporting Maintained Schools in Financial Difficulty;

c.      the distribution of the additional funding support be approved to maintained schools currently in a financial deficit, that meet the proposed eligibility criteria, based on the following methodology (Option 1):

Maintained Nursery Schools                    £25,000 per school

Primary Schools (under 200 pupils)*        £25,000 per school

Primary Schools (200 pupils and over)    £50,000 per school

Secondary Schools                                  £100,000 per school

Special Schools                                        £50,000 per school

*Primary schools under 200 pupils, with a forecast deficit balance of £100k or more as at 31 March 2024 to receive an additional funding allocation of £25,000.

d.     a condition of acceptance of additional funding by any school will require a school resource management review to be undertaken where a review has not been completed since April 2021.